Image 2: I used sections from several reference images of elephants and pieced them together

Image 3: Pieces of elephant sections were placed along the UVW - the transitions are clearly visible

Image 4: I added lines along the transitions and drew a stitched effect along them, too. I also added a rust texture and coloured it green

Image 5: Bump map

Image 6: Finished texture sample

Image 7: Rust image; I used this image several times in other works - it's one of the best images of rust that I have (Fig.07)

Fig. 07

The Spade

Image 1: UVW

Image 2: Metal and wood

Image 3: Baked texture (Multiply)

Image 4: I added a dirt texture onto the handle

Image 5: I made the top part of the handle darker

Image 6: Bump (Fig.08)

Fig. 08

Saw
You can see how I created the saw in Fig.09.

Fig. 09

Siren
In the final picture she looks completely different because of sub surface scattering (Fig.10)

Fig. 10

Lighting

I'm not that happy with the lighting used, because it's too monochromatic. I should have added some additional shade from the left (Fig.11).

Direct sunlight

Red light with a big Area light from the right (it covers the complete wall)

Two lights in the back slightly light the background; in the house itself they are not visible

Two lights in the back slightly light the background; in the house itself they are not visible

A light which shines on the breasts of the siren so that they aren't too dark (I later changed the colour in postproduction)

HDRI in environment

Fig. 11

Post-Production

For the hair, at first I had planned to make it with hair and fur in Max, but there were problems with that (in small renders it looked like a mop, and on the big final render it looked like noodles). So, I painted the hair in Photoshop, whilst trying to add shadows from the hair onto the siren's skin (Fig.12).

Mop or noodles?

Ground to cover the "noodles"

Thick hairs

Thin hairs

Light and shade (with a thick brush)

Shadows on the skin

Fig. 12

For other post production work, I corrected the puddles, painted a drop of water and added some plants (Fig.13). I also added a greenish gradient from the top and slightly corrected the colour of the grass and the background. I hope that this insight into my working methods has been useful to you. If there are questions or anything is not clear to you, please don't hesitate to contact me at the email address provided below. The final image can be seen in Fig.14.